Beachgoers help great white shark stranded on Cape Cod, keeping it wet until rescuers arrive

In this Monday, July 13, 2015 photo provided by Atlantic White Shark Conservancy, a great white shark is led back into the water near South Beach in Chatham, Mass. Beachgoers kept the shark, that was stuck on the beach, wet by splashing it with buckets of water until officials attached a line to its rear caudal fin and Harbormaster Stuart Smith pulled it back into open waters. (Atlantic White Shark Conservancy via AP)
(The Associated Press)

CHATHAM, Mass. – A great white shark that got stranded on a Cape Cod beach is swimming free thanks to beachgoers who kept it wet until rescuers arrived.

Witnesses say the 7-foot male shark got stuck Monday near South Beach in Chatham, Massachusetts, as the tide went out.

Beachgoers kept the shark wet by splashing it with buckets of water until officials attached a line to its rear caudal fin and Harbormaster Stuart Smith pulled it back into open waters. Officials say it took about an hour.

Smith says about 40 people were crowded around the shark when he arrived and it appeared dead.